U.S. patent application number 13/777228 was filed with the patent office on 2013-07-04 for electronic device, method of controlling the same, and program.
This patent application is currently assigned to CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA. The applicant listed for this patent is CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA. Invention is credited to Nobuhisa Kojima.
Application Number | 20130169842 13/777228 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42398139 |
Filed Date | 2013-07-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130169842 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kojima; Nobuhisa |
July 4, 2013 |
ELECTRONIC DEVICE, METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME, AND PROGRAM
Abstract
An electronic device that is accessible to a first storage
medium that has no communication function and a second storage
medium that has a communication function and is detachable to the
device, comprising: an input unit configured to input image data; a
designation unit configured to designate at least one of the first
storage medium and the second storage medium as a storage medium
serving as a storage destination of the image data input by the
input unit; and a control unit configured to, if the first storage
medium is designated as the storage destination of the image data
and the second storage medium is not designated, store the image
data in the first storage medium and store the image data in the
second storage medium as well so as to transmit the image data to
an external apparatus by the communication function of the second
storage medium.
Inventors: |
Kojima; Nobuhisa;
(Yokohama-shi, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA; |
Tokyo |
|
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Tokyo
JP
|
Family ID: |
42398139 |
Appl. No.: |
13/777228 |
Filed: |
February 26, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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12690014 |
Jan 19, 2010 |
8417293 |
|
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13777228 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
348/231.99 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N 5/907 20130101;
H04N 1/00172 20130101; H04N 5/765 20130101; H04N 1/2158 20130101;
H04N 5/225 20130101; H04N 5/772 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
348/231.99 |
International
Class: |
H04N 5/225 20060101
H04N005/225 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Feb 3, 2009 |
JP |
2009-022961 |
Claims
1. An electronic device that is accessible to a first storage
medium that has no communication function and a second storage
medium that has a communication function and is detachable from the
device, comprising: an input unit configured to input data; a
designation unit configured to designate, in response to a user
operation, at least one of the first storage medium and the second
storage medium as a storage medium serving as a storage destination
of the data input by the input unit; and a determination unit
configured to determine whether setting has been done by the user
operation to transmit the data using the communication function of
the second storage medium, wherein when the determination unit
determines that the setting has been done to transmit the data
using the communication function of the second storage medium, the
data input by the input unit is stored in the second storage medium
regardless of the storage destination designated by the designation
unit.
2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a
notification unit configured to notify a warning if the first
storage medium is designated as the storage destination of the
data, and a storage capacity of the second storage medium is less
than a data amount of the data.
3. The device according to claim 1, wherein said control unit moves
data already stored in the second storage medium to a storage
medium incorporated in the electronic device if the first storage
medium is designated as the storage destination of the data, and a
storage capacity of the second storage medium is less than a data
amount of the data.
4. The device according to claim 1, wherein said control unit moves
data already stored in the second storage medium to the first
storage medium if the first storage medium is designated as the
storage destination of the data, and a storage capacity of the
second storage medium is less than a data amount of the data.
5. The device according to claim 4, wherein said control unit
controls to return, to the second storage medium, the data moved
from the second storage medium to the first storage medium after
the data copied to the second storage medium has been transmitted
to the external apparatus.
6. The device according to claim 3, wherein data stored in the
second storage medium are moved to one of the first storage medium
and the storage medium incorporated in the electronic device as
much as a capacity of all data to be transmitted from the first
storage medium to the external apparatus.
7. The device according to claim 3, wherein data stored in the
second storage medium are moved to one of the first storage medium
and the storage medium incorporated in the electronic device as
much as a capacity of one data to be transmitted from the first
storage medium to the external apparatus.
8. The device according to claim 3, wherein said control unit
controls to return, to the second storage medium, all data moved
from the second storage medium to one of the first storage medium
and the storage medium incorporated in the electronic device after
the data copied to the second storage medium has been transmitted
to the external apparatus.
9. The device according to claim 3, wherein said control unit
controls to return, to the second storage medium, one data moved
from the second storage medium to one of the first storage medium
and the storage medium incorporated in the electronic device after
the data copied to the second storage medium has been transmitted
to the external apparatus.
10. (canceled)
11. A method of controlling an electronic device that is accessible
to a first storage medium that has no communication function and a
second storage medium that has a communication function and is
detachable to the device, comprising the steps of: inputting data;
designating one of the first storage medium and the second storage
medium as a storage medium serving as a storage destination of the
data input in the inputting step; and determining whether setting
has been done by the user operation to transmit the input data
using the communication function of the second storage medium,
wherein when it is determined in the step of determining that the
setting has been done to transmit the data using the communication
function of the second storage medium, the input data is stored in
the second storage medium regardless of the designated storage
destination.
12. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium which stores
computer executable code of a computer program that causes a
computer in an electronic device to execute the control method
according to claim 11.
13. The device according to claim 1, wherein the input unit
includes an image sensing unit configured to sense an image and
obtain image data.
14. The device according to claim 13 further comprising a
stabilizing unit configured to stabilize the image sensed by the
image sensing unit.
15. The device according to claim 1, wherein the device is a
digital camera.
16. The device according to claim 1, wherein the first storage
medium is detachable from the device.
17. The device according to claim 1, wherein the second storage
medium is a memory card.
18. The device according to claim 1, wherein when the determination
unit does not determine that the setting has been done to transmit
the data using the communication function of the second storage
medium, the data input by the input unit is stored in the storage
destination designated by the designation unit.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to an electronic device
accessible to a plurality of storage media.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] In recent years, various kinds of storage media have been
standardized and manufactured for sale. Especially, compact
portable storage media known as flash memory cards have many
standards and are used as external storage media (memory cards) for
digital cameras and portable music players.
[0005] As the number of digital cameras which feature a
higher-resolution image sensing element or a moving image capturing
function grows, the amount of captured data is increasing. Hence, a
large-capacity storage medium is demanded.
[0006] To cope with the increasing data amount, a wireless
communication function is imparted to a digital camera to transmit
captured data to an external apparatus.
[0007] To transmit data, the wireless communication function may be
imparted to a so-called memory card (e.g., Japanese Patent
Laid-Open No. 2004-357182). As the wireless communication function,
for example, a wireless communication scheme such as 802.11b,
802.11a, or 802.11g planned by the IEEE802.11 working group is
used.
[0008] However, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-357182 does not
consider a device capable of including a plurality of storage
media.
[0009] For example, a camera having a plurality of memory card
slots allows inserting a memory card with a wireless communication
function into one memory card slot and another memory card without
the wireless communication function into another card slot.
[0010] In this case, data stored in the memory card having the
wireless communication function can be transmitted externally.
However, data stored in the memory card having no wireless
communication function cannot directly be transmitted to the
outside. To externally transmit it, the data stored in the memory
card having no wireless communication function need to be
temporarily copied to the memory card having the wireless
communication function. This operation is cumbersome for the
user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention has been made in consideration of the
above-described problem, and realizes a technique for allowing an
electronic device accessible to a plurality of storage media
including a storage medium having a wireless communication function
to transmit data externally without any cumbersome operation.
[0012] In order to solve the aforementioned problems, the present
invention provides an electronic device that is accessible to a
first storage medium that has no communication function and a
second storage medium that has a communication function and is
detachable to the device, comprising: an input unit configured to
input image data; a designation unit configured to designate at
least one of the first storage medium and the second storage medium
as a storage medium serving as a storage destination of the image
data input by the input unit; and a control unit configured to, if
the first storage medium is designated as the storage destination
of the image data and also the second storage medium is not
designated, store the image data in the first storage medium and
store the image data in the second storage medium as well so as to
transmit the image data to an external apparatus by the
communication function of the second storage medium.
[0013] The present invention also provides a control method of an
electronic device that is accessible to a first storage medium that
has no communication function and a second storage medium that has
a communication function and is detachable to the device,
comprising the steps of: inputting image data; designating one of
the first storage medium and the second storage medium as a storage
medium serving as a storage destination of the image data input in
the inputting step; and if the first storage medium is designated
as the storage destination of the image data and the second storage
medium is not designated, storing the image data in the first
storage medium and storing the image data in the second storage
medium as well so as to transmit the image data to an external
apparatus by the communication function of the second storage
medium.
[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to allow
a device accessible to a plurality of storage media including a
storage medium having a wireless communication function to transmit
data externally without any cumbersome operation.
[0015] Further features of the present invention will become
apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments
(with reference to the attached drawings).
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] FIG. 1 is a view showing the hardware configuration of a
digital camera according to the first embodiment of the present
invention;
[0017] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical arrangement
of the digital camera according to the first embodiment of the
present invention;
[0018] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a module configuration
according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating processing according to
the first embodiment of the present invention;
[0020] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a module configuration
according to the second embodiment of the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing according to
the second embodiment of the present invention; and
[0022] FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration
of a communication memory card according to the first embodiment of
the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0023] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in
detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0024] The following embodiments are merely examples for practicing
the present invention. The embodiments should be properly modified
or changed depending on various conditions and the structure of an
apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The present
invention should not be limited to the following embodiments. A
plurality of embodiments to be described below can also be combined
as needed.
[0025] An electronic device according to the present invention will
now be described in detail based on the embodiment. The dimensions,
materials, forms, and relative layouts of the constituent
components described in the embodiment are not intended to limit
the scope of the invention unless it is specifically stated
otherwise, but are merely explanatory examples.
First Embodiment
[0026] FIG. 1 is a view showing the hardware configuration of an
electronic device according to the first embodiment of the present
invention.
[0027] Referring to FIG. 1, the electronic device of the first
embodiment is a digital camera (to be referred to as a camera
hereinafter) 1. Reference numeral 2 denotes a photographing optical
system; 3, a lens driving unit; 4, an optical axis of the
photographing optical system 2; 5, a lens barrel; 6, an image
sensing element; 7, a memory unit; and 8, a camera shake detection
unit. Reference numeral 9 denotes a camera shake lens driving unit;
10, a power supply; 11, a release button; 12, a correction optical
system; 13, a quick return mirror; and 14, a finder optical
system.
[0028] As shown in FIG. 1, the camera 1 forms an object image near
the image sensing element 6 using the photographing optical system
2 and a focus adjusting unit (not shown). The image sensing element
6 photoelectrically converts the object image to generate image
data based on the input object image. The information of the object
is obtained from the image sensing element 6 and stored in the
memory unit 7 in synchronism with the user operation on the release
button 11. For example, a semiconductor memory serves as the memory
unit 7. The memory unit 7 includes a plurality of memory cards and
an internal memory, as will be described later in detail.
[0029] If a camera shake has occurred during exposure or the like,
the camera shake lens driving unit 9 is operated based on the
detection result of the camera shake detection unit 8. As a result,
the image blur on the imaging plane of the image sensing element 6
is reduced to correct image degradation caused by the camera shake.
In a continuous shooting mode, image data are temporarily stored in
a buffer memory (not shown) and then stored in the memory unit 7
after the end of continuous shooting. After the storage in the
memory unit 7, the buffer memory is released. Note that the camera
1 operates by receiving power from the power supply 10.
[0030] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical arrangement
of the camera according to the first embodiment.
[0031] Referring to FIG. 2, the camera 1 includes an image sensing
system, image processing system, storage/reproduction system, and
control system. The image sensing system includes the photographing
optical system 2 and the image sensing element 6. The image
processing system includes an A/D converter 20 and an image
processing circuit 21. The storage/reproduction system includes a
display unit 22, storage processing circuit 23, and memory card 24.
The control system includes a camera system control circuit 25, AF
sensor 26, AE sensor 27, camera shake sensor 28, operation
detection circuit 29, and lens system control circuit 30.
[0032] The image sensing system is an optical processing system
which forms an image of light from an object onto the imaging plane
of the image sensing element 6 via the photographing optical system
2. Based on the signal from the AE sensor 27, the image sensing
element 6 is exposed to object light having an appropriate light
amount using a stop (not shown) or the like.
[0033] The image processing circuit 21 is a signal processing
circuit which processes an image signal received from the image
sensing element 6 via the A/D converter 20 and corresponding to the
number of pixels of the image sensing element 6. The image
processing circuit 21 includes a white balance circuit, a gamma
correction circuit, and an interpolation calculation circuit for
raising the resolution by interpolation calculation.
[0034] The storage processing circuit 23 outputs the image signal
to memory cards 24a and 24b via I/Fs 61 and 62, respectively. The
storage processing circuit 23 also generates and stores display
data to be output to the display unit 22. The storage processing
circuit 23 also compresses an image or a moving image using a
predetermined method.
[0035] The memory cards 24a and 24b are detachable to the camera 1
via the I/Fs 61 and 62. The memory cards attached to the camera 1
are accessible from it. When image sensing processing is executed,
an image file obtained by the image sensing processing is stored in
a memory card set as the storage destination.
[0036] Note that based on a user operation detected by the
operation detection circuit 29, the camera 1 can set a memory card
as the storage destination.
[0037] In addition, based on a user operation detected by the
operation detection circuit 29, the camera 1 can set whether to
transmit image data obtained by image sensing processing to an
external apparatus using a wireless communication function to be
described later.
[0038] The control system controls the image sensing system, image
processing system, and storage/reproduction system in response to
an external operation. For example, upon detecting press of the
release button 11, the control system controls driving of the image
sensing element 6, the operation of the image processing circuit
21, and compression processing of the storage processing circuit
23. The control system also controls each segment of an information
display device which causes the display unit 22 to display
information on the optical viewfinder, a liquid crystal monitor, or
the like. The camera system control circuit 25 generates and
outputs, e.g., a timing signal upon image sensing. The AF sensor 26
and the AE sensor 27 are connected to the camera system control
circuit 25. The camera system control circuit 25 appropriately
controls the lens, stop plate, and the like based on signals from
these sensors. The camera shake sensor 28 is also connected to the
camera system control circuit 25. In a camera shake correction
mode, the camera system control circuit 25 drives a camera shake
correction unit (not shown) based on the signal from the camera
shake sensor 28.
[0039] A memory card having a wireless communication function will
be explained here with reference to FIG. 7. A memory card 70 having
a connection wireless communication function includes, as
constituent elements, a connector 76, microcomputer 77, wireless
communication circuit unit 78, and memory circuit unit 79.
[0040] The connector 76 is a connection interface which connects
the memory card 70 to the camera 1 or another information
processing apparatus to transfer data. The connector 76 connects
the memory card 70 and the camera 1 mechanically and
electrically.
[0041] When the connector 76 connects the memory card 70 to the
camera 1, the memory card 70 receives power supplied from the
camera 1 via a power supply line. After initialized by a reset
circuit (not shown), the memory card 70 starts operating and
communicates with the camera 1 via a bus line. The wireless
communication circuit unit 78 has a function of wirelessly
transmitting data to an electronic device or another information
processing apparatus having the same wireless communication
function. That is, the wireless communication circuit unit 78
transmits/receives data to/from another electronic device. The
wireless communication circuit unit 78 executes wireless
communication via, e.g., a wireless LAN using a radio wave. The
wireless communication may be done using infrared rays.
[0042] The memory circuit unit 79 includes a rewritable nonvolatile
memory device such as an EEPROM or a flash EEPROM. The memory
circuit unit 79 has a function of storing data supplied from the
electronic device connected via the connector 76.
[0043] The microcomputer 77 incorporates a memory and has a
function of controlling communication with an electronic device
connected via the connector 76 and controlling the wireless
communication circuit unit 78 and the memory circuit unit 79 in
accordance with a control procedure stored in the memory in
advance.
[0044] Note that the hardware configurations of the camera 1 and
the memory card 70 are not limited to those described above.
Especially, control of the device may be executed by hardware such
as a single processor or by causing a plurality of hardware modules
to share processes.
[0045] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a module configuration
according to the first embodiment. Note that in the following
description, the control unit (e.g., the camera system control
circuit 25 or the microcomputer 77) of the camera 1 or the memory
card 70 controls the units of the device, thereby implementing the
functions of the modules.
[0046] Referring to FIG. 3, memory cards 31 and 41 are connectable
to the camera 1. The memory cards 31 and 41 correspond to the
memory cards 24a and 24b in FIG. 2, respectively. In this
embodiment, the memory card 31 is a card having a wireless
communication function (to be referred to as a "communication
memory card" hereinafter). The memory card 41 is a card having no
wireless communication function (to be referred to as a "normal
memory card" hereinafter). The memory card 31 is an example of a
second storage medium, and the memory card 41 is an example of a
first storage medium. The memory card 31 can communicate with an
external apparatus via a wireless communication module 33. Examples
of the external apparatus are a file server and a personal
computer.
[0047] Note that the memory card 41 is of a high-speed storage type
or a large capacity type and is often less expensive than the
memory card 31 because of the absence of the wireless communication
function.
[0048] Processing when the camera 1 has executed image sensing
processing will be described here. Assume that the memory cards 31
and 41 are attached to the camera 1, as shown in FIG. 3. When
capturing is performed in this state, a file generation module 51
of the camera 1 creates an image file containing captured data. A
file saving module 52 transfers the data to a file storing module
32 or 42 of the memory card designated as the storage destination.
The file storing module 32 or 42 stores the data in the memory card
31 or 41.
[0049] A case will be explained here in which the image file
storage destination is the memory card 31. The image file created
by the file generation module 51 of the camera 1 is stored in the
memory card 31. The wireless communication module 33 of the memory
card 31 automatically transmits the stored image file to an
external apparatus. More specifically, the wireless communication
module 33 monitors data write in the memory card 31, and upon
detecting the write of new data, transmits the data to the external
apparatus.
[0050] A case will be explained next in which the file storage
destination is the memory card 41. The image file created by the
file generation module 51 of the camera 1 is stored in the memory
card 41. In this case, even when the user wants to transmit the
image file stored in the memory card 41 to the external apparatus,
the image file cannot be transmitted to the external apparatus
because the memory card 41 has no wireless communication
function.
[0051] In this embodiment, if setting has been done to transmit an
image file obtained upon capturing to the external apparatus, the
file transfer module 54 copies the image file stored in the memory
card 41 to the memory card 31. As a result of copy, the wireless
communication module 33 recognizes the write of new data in the
memory card 31 and transmits the image file copied from the memory
card 41 to the external apparatus.
[0052] Note that the camera 1 may set in advance based on a user
operation whether to automatically transmit all captured image
files, cause the user to decide transmission permission/prohibition
every time an image is captured, or cause the user to decide files
to be transmitted after capturing a plurality of images.
[0053] A file capacity determination module 53 determines whether
the remaining capacity of the memory card 31 is equal to or smaller
than a threshold, thereby determining whether image file copy from
the memory card 41 to the memory card 31 is possible. If the
remaining capacity of the memory card 31 is equal to or smaller
than the threshold, the camera 1 warns the user by, e.g., blinking
an LED (not shown) or making a buzzer sound. The threshold depends
on a predetermined condition. For example, if setting has been done
to copy an image file to the file storing module 32 of the memory
card 31 every time an image is captured, the data amount of one
image file is used as the threshold. If setting has been done to
copy image files to the memory card 31 after a plurality of images
are captured, the total data amount of the image files to be
transmitted is used as the threshold. The threshold may be an
arbitrary value. The threshold may be decided based on the
remaining capacity of the memory card 31 or the size of image files
to be copied from the memory card 41.
[0054] If the file capacity determination module 53 has determined
that the remaining capacity of the memory card 31 is equal to or
smaller than the threshold and also smaller than the data amount of
the image files to be transmitted from the memory card 41, the
camera warns the user by, e.g., blinking an LED (not shown) or
making a buzzer sound. This makes it possible to notify the user in
advance that the image files stored in the memory card 41 cannot be
copied to the memory card 31, and image file transmission is
impossible consequently.
[0055] The functions of the modules according to the embodiment
have been described above. The procedure of processing to be
executed by the camera 1 according to the embodiment will be
explained next.
[0056] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating processing to be executed
by the camera 1 according to the embodiment. Note that the memory
card 41 serving as a normal card and the memory card 31 serving as
a communication card are attached to the camera 1, and the storage
destination has been set by a user operation. Steps S109 and S110
are processes to be executed by the communication memory card,
although they are illustrated in the single flowchart for the
descriptive convenience.
[0057] First, the camera 1 determines whether setting has been done
to transmit an image file using a communication memory card (S101).
Upon determining that the setting has been done, the process
advances to step S102. Upon determining that the setting has not
been done, the process advances to step S114 to execute normal
storage processing for a set storage destination.
[0058] Next, the camera 1 determines whether a communication memory
card has been attached to itself (S102). More specifically, the
determination is done by inquiring of an attached memory card about
its type. Upon determining that a communication memory card has
been attached, the process advances to step S103. Upon determining
that no communication memory card has been attached, the camera
displays, on the display unit 22 or the like, a warning
representing that image file transmission using the wireless
communication function is impossible (S112) and ends the
processing.
[0059] The camera 1 then determines whether the remaining capacity
of the communication memory card is equal to or smaller than the
threshold (S103). As described above, this processing is executed
to determine whether image file copy to the communication memory
card is possible. Upon determining that the remaining capacity is
not equal to or smaller than the threshold, i.e., the remaining
capacity is larger than the threshold, the process advances to step
S104. Upon determining that the remaining capacity is equal to or
smaller than the threshold, the process advances to step S113 to
display, on the display unit 22 or the like, a warning representing
that no sufficient capacity remains in the communication memory
card, and the processing ends.
[0060] The warning in step S113 is displayed even if the image file
storage destination has been set to the normal memory card. As
described above, when transmitting an image file, even an image
file stored in the normal memory card is copied to the
communication memory card. Hence, even when the image file storage
destination has been set to the normal memory card, image file
transmission is impossible if the communication memory card has no
free area. In this embodiment, even if the image file storage
destination has been set to the normal memory card, the warning is
done unless the communication memory card has a sufficient
remaining capacity.
[0061] The camera 1 determines whether an image sensing operation
has been performed (S104). Upon determining that the operation has
been performed, the process advances to step S105. Upon determining
that the operation has not been performed, the process is
repeated.
[0062] The camera 1 then determines the currently set storage
destination (S105). Upon determining that the storage destination
is the communication memory card, the process advances to step
S106. Upon determining that the storage destination is the normal
memory card, the process advances to step S107.
[0063] A case will be described in which the storage destination
has been determined to be the communication memory card. In this
case, the camera 1 stores an image file obtained by image sensing
processing in the communication memory card (S106).
[0064] Next, the camera determines whether an external apparatus
capable of communicating with the communication memory card exists.
If a communicable external apparatus exists, the image file stored
in the communication memory card is transmitted to the external
apparatus (S109). This determination is done by, e.g., transmitting
a query signal to the external apparatus and checking the
presence/absence of a response.
[0065] A case will be described in which the normal memory card has
been set as the image file storage destination. In this case, the
camera 1 stores an image file obtained by image sensing processing
in the normal memory card (S107).
[0066] Next, the camera 1 copies the image file stored in the
normal memory card to the communication memory card via the file
transfer module 54 (S108). At this time, the image file temporarily
stored in the normal memory card is copied. Alternatively, the
image file may temporarily be stored in a temporary storage device
such as a RAM incorporated in the camera 1. Then, the image file
may be read out from the RAM and copied to the communication memory
card.
[0067] When the copy processing in step S108 has been executed, the
communication memory card detects the new image file and transmits
it to the external apparatus (S110).
[0068] Upon receiving a transmission completion notification from
the communication memory card, the camera 1 deletes the image file
copied in step S108 from the communication memory card (S111) and
ends the processing.
[0069] The processes in steps S109 to S111 will be described here.
The transmission processing in step S109 is executed when the
storage destination is the communication memory card. In this case,
the user wants to transmit the image file and simultaneously keep
it stored in the communication memory card at a high probability.
Hence, the transmitted image file is not automatically deleted from
the communication memory card.
[0070] Conversely, the transmission processing in step S110 is
executed when the storage destination is the normal memory card,
and the image file has been copied to the communication memory
card. In this case, the user wants to transmit the image file and
simultaneously keep it stored in the normal memory card at a high
probability. That is, since the image file is already stored in the
normal memory card, the image file coped to the communication
memory card becomes unnecessary after transmission at a high
probability. Hence, the transmitted image file is automatically
deleted from the communication memory card in step S111.
[0071] Note that upon detecting power off during image file
transmission, the camera 1 interrupts transmission. However, if the
point of time of transmission interrupt and the connection
relationship to the memory card 31 do not change, the transmission
may be resumed by turning on the power switch.
[0072] If the battery cover is opened during image file
transmission, the camera interrupts transmission. However, if the
point of time of transmission interrupt and the connection
relationship to the memory card 31 do not change, the transmission
may be resumed by closing the battery cover.
[0073] If a capturing or pre-capturing instruction is input via,
e.g., the release button 11 during image file transmission, the
camera 1 interrupts copy of the file that is being transmitted
while giving priority to capturing. This enables capturing without
missing the shutter chance.
[0074] As described above, in the first embodiment, an image file
stored in the memory card 41 having no wireless communication
function is copied to the memory card 31 having the wireless
communication function, thereby allowing image file transmission to
a communicable external apparatus. Note that in the embodiment, the
camera 1 automatically executes the operation in step S109 to S111.
Hence, the user can automatically transmit image files stored in
the normal memory card to the external apparatus only by
instructing the camera 1 to perform image sensing. That is, the
user need not perform the cumbersome operation of copying the image
files from the normal memory card to the communication memory
card.
[0075] Note that in this embodiment, a camera having two memory
card slots has been exemplified. However, the same effect as
described above can be obtained even in the camera 1 which
incorporates a memory corresponding to one of the memory cards. For
the combination of an internal memory and a communication memory
card, even when the storage destination is the internal memory, the
communication memory card can transmit an image file. The internal
memory is expected to have a higher storage speed and therefore
contributes to an increase in the number of images to be shot
continuously, as compared to the camera using two memory cards.
Second Embodiment
[0076] The second embodiment will be described next. This
embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a camera
1 has an internal memory in addition to the arrangements shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2. Note that the first and second embodiments have many
common parts. Hence, a description of parts common to those of the
first embodiment will be omitted, and processes unique to the
second embodiment will mainly be explained.
[0077] In this embodiment, processing to be executed when the
remaining capacity of a memory card 31 is smaller than the data
amount of an image file to be copied from a memory card 41 in the
above-described camera 1 will be described.
[0078] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the module configuration
of a system according to the second embodiment. The same reference
numerals as in FIG. 3 denote the same parts in FIG. 5.
[0079] As shown in FIG. 5, the camera 1 includes a file storing
module 55 configured to store an image file in the internal memory,
unlike the arrangement shown in FIG. 3.
[0080] Referring to FIG. 5, a case will be explained in which
capturing is performed while setting the storage destination to the
memory card 41. If a file capacity determination module 53 has
determined that the remaining capacity of the memory card 31 is
equal to or smaller than a threshold, a file transfer module 54
cannot execute image file copy.
[0081] In this case, the file storing module 55 moves an image file
already stored in the memory card 31 to the internal memory. This
allows to temporarily generate a free area in the memory card 31
and copy the image file from the memory card 41.
[0082] After a wireless communication module 33 of the memory card
31 has transmitted the image file copied from the memory card 41 to
an external apparatus, the transmitted image file is deleted from
the memory card 31. Then, the image file moved to the internal
memory is returned to the memory card 31. This makes it possible to
transmit an image file obtained by image sensing without losing any
image file already stored in the memory card 31.
[0083] The functions of the modules according to the embodiment
have been described above. The procedure of processing to be
executed by the camera 1 according to the embodiment will be
explained next. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing to be
executed by the camera 1 according to the embodiment. Note that
steps S209 and S210 are processes to be executed by the
communication memory card, although they are illustrated in the
single flowchart for the descriptive convenience.
[0084] Processes in steps S201, S202, S204 to S207, S209, S212, and
S214 of FIG. 6 are the same as those in steps S101, S102, S104 to
S107, S109, S112, and S114 of FIG. 4. Note that if it is determined
in step S205 that the storage destination is the communication
memory card, the camera 1 may determine the remaining capacity of
the communication memory card, and warn the user if the remaining
capacity is equal to or smaller than the threshold.
[0085] Processing after an image file is stored in the normal
memory card in step S207 will be described next. In step S251, the
camera 1 determines whether the remaining capacity of the
communication memory card is equal to or smaller than the
threshold. Upon determining that the remaining capacity is equal to
or smaller than the threshold, the process advances to step S252.
Upon determining that the remaining capacity is not equal to or
smaller than the threshold, the process advances to step S208.
[0086] A case in which it is determined in step S251 that the
remaining capacity is not equal to or smaller than the threshold
will be described first. Processes in steps S208, S210, and S211
are the same as those in steps S108, S110, S111 of FIG. 4.
[0087] In step S253, the camera 1 determines whether copy
processing to the internal memory to be described later has been
executed. In this case, copy to the internal memory has not been
executed, and the processing ends.
[0088] A case in which it is determined in step S251 that the
remaining capacity is equal to or smaller than the threshold will
be described next. In this case, an image file already stored in
the communication memory card is moved to the free area of the
internal memory (S252). Note that "move" indicates copying an image
file to the storage area of the moving destination and deleting the
image file from the moving source. With this processing, a free
area is temporarily generated in the communication memory card.
This processing is repeated until a sufficient storage capacity is
ensured in the communication memory card.
[0089] If it is determined that the remaining capacity of the
communication memory card is not equal to or smaller than the
threshold, the camera 1 advances the process to step S208.
Processes in steps S208, S210, and S211 are the same as those in
FIG. 4.
[0090] The camera 1 determines whether the image file has been
moved from the communication memory card to the internal memory in
step S252 (S253). Upon determining that the image file has been
moved (YES in step S253), the moved image file is returned from the
internal memory to the communication memory card (S254). More
specifically, the image file is copied to the communication memory
card, and the image file in the internal memory is deleted.
[0091] When transmitting a plurality of image files, an image file
may be returned from the internal memory to the communication
memory card every time one image file has been transmitted. If it
is determined that the image file has not been moved (NO in step
S253), the processing ends.
[0092] If the power switch has turned off during image file
movement in step S252 or S254, the processing continues until the
image file is moved from the internal memory to the communication
memory card.
[0093] If the battery cover is opened during image file movement in
step S252 or S254, the processing continues until the image file is
moved from the internal memory to the communication memory
card.
[0094] Note that the data amount of a file that moves between the
communication memory card and the internal memory depends on the
threshold of the remaining capacity of the communication memory
card. For example, if setting has been done to copy an image file
to the memory card 31 every time an image is captured, the data
amount of one image file is used as the threshold. If setting has
been done to copy image files to the memory card 31 after a
plurality of images are captured, the total capacity of the image
files to be transmitted is used as the threshold. If the internal
memory has no free area corresponding to the total capacity of the
image files to be transmitted, the camera 1 can repeatedly move the
data amount of one image file. This enables transmission even if
the remaining capacity of the internal memory is smaller than the
total capacity of image files to be transmitted.
[0095] If capturing is performed during image file movement, file
movement is interrupted while giving priority to capturing. This
enables capturing without missing the shutter chance.
[0096] As described above, in the second embodiment, use of the
internal memory makes it possible to transmit an image file stored
in the normal memory card to the external apparatus even when the
remaining capacity of the communication memory card is small. Note
that the user can transmit an image file only by instructing the
camera to perform image sensing because the process from step S205
is automatically executed, as in the first embodiment.
[0097] Note that in the above description, the internal memory is
used as the moving destination. However, if the normal memory card
has a free area, it may be used as the image file moving
destination.
[0098] An example in which the present invention is applied to a
digital camera has been described above. However, the present
invention is also applicable to any other electronic device capable
of creating data and storing it in a storage medium having a
wireless communication function independently of the remaining
capacity of the storage medium.
Other Embodiments
[0099] Aspects of the present invention can also be realized by a
computer of a system or apparatus (or devices such as a CPU or MPU)
that reads out and executes a program recorded on a memory device
to perform the functions of the above-described embodiment(s), and
by a method, the steps of which are performed by a computer of a
system or apparatus by, for example, reading out and executing a
program recorded on a memory device to perform the functions of the
above-described embodiment(s). For this purpose, the program is
provided to the computer for example via a network or from a
recording medium of various types serving as the memory device
(e.g., computer-readable medium).
[0100] While the present invention has been described with
reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the
invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments.
The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest
interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and
equivalent structures and functions.
[0101] This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent
Application No. 2009-022961, filed Feb. 3, 2009, which is hereby
incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
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